Eruption
by wolf of infinity
Summary: No older brother should have to see their baby brother falling apart without being able to help... There's been a Volcanic eruption in Iceland, and Norway is greatly worried about his brother's failing health. Norway and Iceland brother-fic, one-shot.


_I just felt the need to write a fic focusing on the brotherhood between Norway and Iceland. It's my take on the period of the Volcanic eruption early this year, and Norway's reaction to it. The inspiration was a beautiful Icelandic lullaby called __"__**Sofðu unga ástin mín**__". It's just... heartbreakingly sad! Here's a link to a gorgeous version of it (just remove the spaces):_

_http : / www . youtube . com / watch?v=1Jh4M-g3dqs_

_Please do listen to this while reading, as it really sets the mood! I hope you'll enjoy the story~!_

_Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia – Axis Powers or any of its characters._

oOo

Norway was not pleased. Not pleased at all. A frown was etched onto his usually unfazed features, as he marched back and forth across the floor, as if he was intent on carving a permanent path into the wood. To anyone who weren't familiar with the Nordic nation, his mood could easily be mistaken for frustration, even anger. If anyone bothered looking closer, however, they could see that behind the apparent irritation, there was concern.

The news was very disconcerting, and he found himself thinking of what to do. Sure, the consequences were rather annoying for many countries, not only himself. No planes would be able to cross through the sky. Depressing articles were posted all across the news papers. The consequences were rather bad.

But it wasn't the consequences for them he was worried about. At the moment, he could care less that his people would have to postpone their stupid flight plans for a while. This wasn't about _them_. It wasn't about Norway, nor any other country that unfortunately happened to be located around that specific area.

This was about his little brother. The thought of his brother's condition sent shivers down his spine. The poor boy was already suffering from the last bout of economical crisis, and still hadn't recovered fully. And now _this_...! This God-damned volcano that decided to ruin everything.

A string of not-so-nice profanities were uttered as Norway stopped abruptly, having decided what to do. Sure, he was a country, and he had a responsibility to his people, who wanted to find a solution to things. Sure, he probably should stick around and work his way through bunches of paperwork, or attempt to perform the miracles his government seemed to demand of him.

He was a nation, yes. But first, and definitely foremost, he was a brother. An older brother.

"Herr Norge, please..." he turned to look at his prime minister, who looked a bit unnerved at Norway's out-of-character stride across the office. "Something needs to be done about this-"

"And what do you propose I do, Stoltenberg?" Norway's voice was sharper than usual, as he stopped and gave the man a level stare, which caused the man to look even more uncomfortable. It wasn't that Norway disliked the man, but at the moment he did not need to hear those words any more than he already had. 'we have to do something', 'this is a catastrophe', 'Herr Norge, blah, blah, blah, _boohoo_'.

As if Norway could just head over and tell the damn volcano to stop spewing ash and whatnot. Humans nowadays just didn't seem to understand, or respect the moods of the nature. Sure, some humans thought about the consequences for the environment, but the major problem seemed to be that planes were unable to fly for a while. If Norway were to be hundred percent honest, he thought that the humans needed to get their priorities changed.

His prime minister started to say something, but Norway just shook his head, heading for the door. The man blinked.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm doing what I should have done for a while now," Norway replied shortly.

Barely taking the time to fetch his jacket, he headed out of the office, slamming it shut behind him with a bit more force than intended, leaving a startled Jens Stoltenberg to stare after him.

It didn't matter that the air was closed – he was a fucking nation, damn it – if he wished to visit Iceland, then he would find a way.

oOo

To get to Iceland wasn't too hard – he had his ways. The real challenge was getting inside. Norway fidgeted where he stood outside the door, feeling nervous all of the sudden. A bout of uncertainty hit him. What if Iceland didn't wish to see him? What if he was fine, and was busy trying to fix things just as Norway stood there, lingering outside the front door?

Then again... what if he was really sick? That thought decided everything, and he lifted his fist to knock swiftly on the solid door. No sound. Now, that did very little to ease his worries.

Trying the handle, he found that it wasn't locked, and thus slipped inside quietly. The entrance hall was silent and dim-lit, and he stood for a moment, just listening. Everything was silent, there were no signs of movement anywhere. It was unnerving.

Whether it was instinct or something else, he wouldn't know, but he soon found himself wandering over to where he knew Iceland's room was. He noticed that the closer he got to the room, the warmer and tighter the air got, almost as if he was walking towards a particularly large bonfire. Reaching the door, he knocked again, decidedly more hesitantly this time as he tried to keep his face neutral. Muffled coughs could be heard from inside.

"Go away..." he then heard, so softly it was a wonder he could hear it at all. He didn't pay the muttered words much mind, but felt his heart sink at that tone. Was Iceland... crying? His frown softened slightly, and he bit his lower lip. Damn, he never really was any good at comforting. Crying made him uncomfortable.

Opening the door, he winced at the heat in the room. He could see a lump on the bed, trembling slightly, and walked over quietly.

"Island?" he murmured, and noticed how the many layers of sheets tensed, as a stifled sob escaped from under its confines. Damn, Iceland's breathing was really heavy and constricted, he noticed.

"I'm f-fine, go away!"

"No."

A face appeared from under the sheets at this, and Norway felt his eyes widen slightly, despite himself. He'd never seen Iceland so stark white before. Sure, he was normally pale, but this was far beyond his ordinary Nordic complexion. His cheeks, however, were painted an angry red colour, no doubt from the fever he could see raging in those glazy lavender eyes.

Hesitating no further, he frowned, walking over to the bed.

"If you've c-come to blame me-" Iceland cut of abruptly as Norway put his hand against his forehead. Soon after, he retracted his arm abruptly, eyes widening in alarm. Iceland was staring at him with obvious wonder and question, as more tears trickled down his cheeks.

Without any further ado, Norway headed over to the windows, pushing them wide open, before tearing off several layers of sheets. Somewhat cool air swept into the room – thankfully the air in these parts had yet to be tainted by too much ash and heat. Iceland shivered, but only blinked dazedly as the sheets were removed.

"What are you...?" he eyed Norway curiously, blinking slowly and squinting as if he couldn't quite see the older nation.

"You have a horrible fever," Norway murmured seriously. "Need to cool you down."

"But it's cold..."

"It needs to be."

Iceland frowned slightly, but didn't move from his position. Norway dropped the blankets and sheets off on the floor by the foot of the bed, before standing and eying Iceland while trying to stay composed

"Why did you come...?" the younger whispered after a while of silence. "To complain about how I'm at fault? Or maybe to demand money for the setbacks t-this has caused...?" Norway had to admit he was a bit hurt that his younger brother would think something like that, but a glance at the blinking light on the voicemail by the phone told him that Iceland might have been getting a lot of those comments from others.

"I was worried," he settled with, after a moment of silence.

"W-what?" Iceland clearly hadn't expected him to be so straight-forward. In truth, Norway was quite surprised at himself too.

"You heard me."

"I did, but I don't... I mean..." Iceland broke off, coughing harshly. Norway was at his side in a few rapid movements, helping him sit up, and rubbing his back comfortingly. God, he could feel the bones of his back through the shirt... He gave the other an once-over, and his worry deepened when he noticed just how thin and frail he looked. It was as if he'd lost all colour too, except for the feverish red of his cheeks; his eyes seemed duller, and even his silvery blonde hair seemed to be as white as snow, where it fell into his face, curly slightly as it came in contact with the cold sweat on his skin.

"_Herregud, _Island..." Norway breathed, and his voice held alarm. Iceland tensed, trying to pull his sheets up to hide his thin body from view.

"I'm fine..." he murmured, looking away from Norway.

Norway felt his heart ache at his brother's pain. He felt like a horrible older brother. He should be able to protect his little brother, from any sort of pain and illness... Jesus, he should be able to take care of him and_ help_ him.

Yet, he could do nothing to stop the Volcano from causing just another crack in his brother's fragile health. Sure, this particular eruption would stop in time, and it wasn't major, but others would come, and who knew just how long Iceland would be able to hold on and get through it...

He felt absolutely helpless. It was greatly frustrating, and incredibly frightening. No older brother should have to see their baby brother falling apart without being able to help. To help was his job, damn it!

"_Faen_...!" he didn't even realize he had stood, fists clenched at his sides as tears burnt in his eyes. Whirling around, so he wasn't fazing Iceland's shocked expression, but looking out the open windows, he tried desperately to control his own emotions.

He felt so... fucking useless.

"Stóri bróðir...?" the words were so quiet, and surprised him so much that he turned back, fists unclenching in an instant. Iceland was eying him with a mix of confusion and sorrow. The innocent expression reminded him so much of when the boy was just a little child, and this was also the first time since then that he'd called him "big brother".

Without really comprehending what he was doing, he walked back, sat down on the edge of the bed, and pulled the younger into his arms. Iceland gave a small gasp of surprise at the sudden embrace, but didn't try to pull away.

"I'm so sorry, lillebror..." Norway whispered quietly, a tear leaking down his cheek as he growled quietly at himself. "I'm such an awful brother, unable t-to help you in any way..." he held the other close, feeling just how warm the other was. Iceland didn't have the energy to hug him back, but instead leant into the embrace, leaning his head against Norway's shoulder.

"This is enough," he whispered, with a small smile as his eyelids threatened to drop. "I'm... I'm happy that you came."

"I'll always come if you need me," Norway replied, and at the moment he couldn't care less just how cheesy that sounded. There was no hesitation or doubt to the statement.

The room was silent for a while, as Iceland's heavy breathing was the only sound that could be heard, along with the cheerful chirps of a single bird that had yet to be aware of the looming danger not too far away.

"Can you... can you sing that song...?" Iceland whispered after a while, eyes closed now, as he was too exhausted to keep them open. Norway blinked.

"What song?"

"The... sad one," Iceland whispered back, and as Norway glanced down, he was yet again reminded of when the other was a child. Back then, he'd used to sing to Iceland, quite often. Many of said songs were sad, but Iceland had taken a particular liking to one of them, he recalled. Expression softening, he cleared his voice slightly and began to sing. His voice was soft, though a bit gruff as he hadn't sung in a while, but the younger seemed to be pleased, giving a small sigh of contentment as he nestled his head into the crook of Norway's neck, just as he'd done when he was young.

Norway sung gently, and felt just like he had felt back then – like a good older brother.

Just for a moment, he could close his eyes, and be certain of the fact that in _his_ arms, his brother would always be absolutely, perfectly safe.

oOo

_I hope you enjoyed, and I would really appreciate it if you could leave me a review! One good review means more to me than lots of favs, and makes it more likely that I'll remember your name~ ^^_

_The song I mentioned in my note at the beginning is also the song I imagine Norway is singing :3 Anyway, here are some translations for you:_

_Herr Norge – Mr. Norway_

_Island – Norwegian equivalent of Iceland_

_Herregud – Oh my God_

_Faen – Fuck (or something along those lines)_

_Stóri bróðir__ – Big brother (Icelandic)_

_Lillebror – Little brother (Norwegian)_


End file.
